Decarbonisation Technology August 2025 Issue

Middle East and North Africa (MENA) has the potential to produce the world’s lowest-cost green hydrogen. A reliable supply of low-cost renewable hydrogen will enable MENA to become a competitive hub for CO 2 utilisation and e-fuels production at scale. The opportunity is clear: rather than burying carbon and its economic value, markets can be built around it. That is the strategic edge of utilisation: transforming emissions into molecules, and liabilities into long-term industrial opportunity. However, delivering these projects is technically complex, especially at scale. Electrolysers for hydrogen production, CO 2 capture systems, and synthesis units are all at different technology readiness levels (TRLs), with varying load profiles and integration challenges. Bridging these mismatches requires life cycle engineered solutions underpinned by precise execution strategies that ensure process stability, interface compatibility, and commercial performance from day one. Bridging the gap between conceptual ambition and engineered delivery requires pragmatic experience and multidisciplinary coordination. For e-fuels to scale, they must be delivered with the same confidence as traditional sectors such as oil and gas. Engineurs works with end-product offtakers, technology providers, feedstock suppliers, developers, original equipment manufacturers (OEMs), and operators to deliver to all stakeholders’ expectations. The company brings the pragmatism of engineering, procurement, and construction (EPC) experience to the cutting edge of chemical synthesis. CCUS in practice: what we have learned in the field Turning policy ambition into operational projects is not for the faint of heart. It takes more than promising lab-scale technologies. Rapid deployment, system-level integration, and rigorous execution strategies are essential, particularly when deploying novel configurations in real-world industrial and financial settings. CCUS projects are rarely straightforward. It means navigating variable flue gas compositions, tailoring modularisation for space-constrained sites, interfacing with legacy control and utility

CCUS

Carbon capture, utilisation and storage

Capture

Utilisation

Storage

capture in a cost centre and liability narrative – one of compliance and containment – rather than unlocking the potential of captured carbon as a circular feedstock. Utilisation offers a different yet complementary trajectory. The ‘U’ – utilisation – transforms CO 2 from a waste product into a building block. With the right infrastructure, carbon can be reintroduced into the economy through synthetic fuels or e-fuels, such as methanol and e-SAF, representing a chemical revalorisation of CO 2 as an energy vector. These synthetic fuels are drop-in, energy-dense carriers of renewable and recycled carbon, offering full compatibility with existing transport, storage, and combustion systems. E-fuels represent one of the few viable decarbonisation pathways for hard-to-abate sectors, such as aviation and maritime, and are gaining policy traction. Frameworks such as the EU’s Renewable Energy Directive (RED III), ReFuelEU Aviation, and the UK’s SAF mandate are actively embedding these molecules into national energy strategies. With abundant solar and wind resources, the “ With the right infrastructure, carbon can be reintroduced into the economy through synthetic fuels or e-fuels, such as methanol and e-SAF, representing a chemical revalorisation of CO 2 as an energy vector ” Figure 2 Visualising CCUS: capturing, utilising, and storing carbon for net zero Credit: BSMA Enterprises